Word of the Year

So here we are again . . . rapping up one year and kicking off the start of a new one. 

I’ll admit - I’m a sucker for the magic that a new year creates. The idea of starting fresh and making big goals to be accomplished over the next 365 days. . . .

But I’m also a realist. I totally understand those goals are really just dreams until you put some work boots on them.

Unless you add some action verbs to your sentences those goals are going to stay where they are floating around in the universe - just wishful thinking.

One of the fun ways I chose to celebrate the new year is with a word of the year.

I’ve done this over the last 5 years as a way to keep me focused on my priorities while also encouraging personal growth in all areas of my life.

So, I started thinking about my word for 2022 . . . 

In 2017 my word was FAITH. That year I took a leap of faith. After 17 years in the classroom I decided to leave my career and become a full-time personal trainer.

In 2018 I decided to dream a little bigger and really push my capabilities, choosing the phrase MADE FOR MORE to guide me and provide me the strength to dream those big dreams.

2019 the word was UNITY as I worked closely with my team to build a brand we could be proud of. UNITY was also there to help me work toward strengthening our family bond by making sure I was present and 100% checked in, helping me reconnect with my kiddos and my always-supportive hubby.

2020 I decided I was ready to move forward which meant having the courage to say yes to things that scared me. My word that year was OPPORTUNITY to remind me to take on any opportunity I was given even if it was scary, intimating, or completely out of my comfort zone.

Saying yes meant trying new things - trips, conferences, meeting new people, and even crazy things my kiddos wanted to do that normally I’d opt out of.

Saying yes allowed me to expand and grow my business, affording me the opportunity to quit my job and go out on my own, in turn launching Midlife Coaching, LLC!!

I knew that the next year (Covid and all) I really wanted to stretch myself, so in 2021 I chose the word THRIVE. This really encouraged me to dive deep in learning and absorbing all I could and not just survive another year but to thrive in all I could!

So here we are . . . the BIG reveal . . . this year’s word . . .
LEVEL UP!!

After looking at a few areas in my life I feel like I was just going through the motions. Certain areas in my business, areas in my marriage, and areas in my health.

I don’t want to just go through the motions.

I don’t want to half-ass life.

So here we go ~> it’s time to LEVEL UP

It’s time to step out of that comfort zone once again and push forward.

I want to go bigger. I want to push harder.

I wanted to redefine my definition of success, create goals around that new definition and put some action verbs in my sentences.

I want to redefine what is possible for me.

I want to create a solid, well-designed plan that gets me from Point A to Point B

If you have followed me for a while now, then you know l openly share my struggles. I share my moments of brokenness, moments of wanting to give up, but this last week I shared my desire to move forward, to fall back in love with the journey.

I think that’s that part I’ve been missing.

Enjoying the journey.

Learning to grow again, to evolve. To grow as a woman, a mom, a wife, and a business owner.

It’s time to rise above complacency, rise above the noise and elevate to an entirely new level.

It’s ME versus ME!!

I’m excited to see what can be accomplished when I use this phrase to guide all my actions.

And here’s the deal - the real honest, not BS deal . . .

This word . .. this phrase . . . is not going to do crap if I don’t put in the action!!

Just like those affirmations we talk about. You can write beautiful mantras and post them all over, but unless you follow through, unless you create a plan, unless you DO SOMETHING those words are simply words on a paper, a dream in the clouds. They are not your reality!

What about you, what is your word of the year?